Role Of Screen Time In Memory Impairment And Academic Achievement Among University Students

Abstract

The current research was done to investigate how screen time contributed to the impairment of memory and academic performance among college students. The study adopted a quantitative and cross-sectional correlational study design. The sample size was 250 university students who are aged between 18 and 25 years and the sample was chosen using convenience sampling. The demographic information sheet, self-reported screen time (in hours), Everyday Memory Questionnaire-Revised (EMQ-R) to test memory impairment, and self-reported CGPA as a metric of academic success were used to gather the data. The findings illustrated that the screen time had a significant and positive correlation with memory impairment, r(248) = .923, p <.001 and an insignificant negative correlation with academic achievement, r(248) = -.928, p <.001. Also, memory impairment was reported as relatively negatively correlated with CGPA, r(248) = -.866, p <.001. Regression analysis also showed that screen time made a significant prediction of memory impairment (R 2 =.851) and academic achievement (R 2 =.861). The independent samples t-test did not indicate any gender differences between the variables of the study. The results are that excessive screen time can have a negative effect on cognitive functioning and academic performance in university students. The research paper indicates that there is need to monitor the use of screens to improve memory performance and educational achievement. Although these relationships have not been investigated in a longitudinal research design with objective measures before, it is advised that future research should address such relationships.